It’s not something we want to think about, but what happens to your retirement savings and life cover if you pass away before you reach retirement age? How do they reach the people you leave behind, and how soon?

If you’re a member of a pension fund that invests in a retirement vehicle like Old Mutual’s SuperFund, your dependants (for example your husband, wife, parents or children) will be entitled to a death benefit from your retirement savings and life cover.

But until the fund’s management board has all the information they need, no payments can be made. To make sure that money reaches the right loved ones, you and your employer need to make sure a few very important steps are followed.

So if you’re a SuperFund member, or a member of a trustee board that deals with the fund on behalf of your company’s employees, watch this video for an explanation of the responsibilities of:

Fund members
Their employers
Their dependants and beneficiaries

Learn more here about the Old Mutual SuperFund, South Africa’s largest umbrella retirement fund.